Take Chase
by bumblebee84
Summary: A young Indian Tigress runs into a circus train North of her homeland. They seem pretty welcoming in letting her join, but she is not so sure she is willing... but what other choice does she have? A silly, cheesy, romantic, sad, tragic story about a girl on the run and our favorite characters from the movie Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted. OCxVitaly Gotta love dem clichés ;D
1. Prologue

Underneath the cover of the tall green grass a young cub rolled around playfully in the dusty earth beneath her. She giggled happily, flipping back and forth, letting the dirt cover her back.

"Ninarika, come here," came the gentle laugh of her mother. The tigress padded over to her offspring, giving her a curious look.

The little cub flopped onto her side and looked up at her mother. She huffed with a little mischievous smile and rolled onto her other side. Her mother snorted, but her eyes flashed with amusement. She backed up slowly, raising her haunches. When the cub turned to look at her again the tigress sprang, pouncing on top of her. The cub squealed in surprise and jumped away. Her mother bounced back, laughing, and bounded off into the distance.

Ninarika chased after her, eyes full of energy and excitement. They reached the stream and the tigress stopped, flipping around to face her. The cub went to pounce, but her mother stood up and swatted a paw at the water, splashing her. She laughed, shaking the water from her fur.

Glancing down at the water's surface she noticed her reflection in the ripples created from the splash. She peered over the side, her expression changing to one of curiosity and wonder. Her fur was a soft golden orange faded out to white. Her stripes were also faded; a rusty rouge. She tilted her head. Her pelt was a much lighter shade than her parent's, theirs a bright orange-yellow with jet black stripes. Especially her mother, her fur extra dark, almost red it seemed.

Another wave of water doused her fur. The young cub shook her head clear and turned her attention over to her mother. The tigress smiled brightly before sticking out her tongue teasingly. Ninarika laughed and pounced at her. Her mother caught her and wrapped her arms around her, holding her captive. She nuzzled her nose to the cub's. Ninarika wined in protest, kicking out and nipping at her mother's ears. Her mother gave in and let her go.

The cub bounced away and quickly got down into a hunting position. Her mother laughed and leapt into the running stream, her tail flicking at the water's surface. Ninarika stood back up, looking confused at first, then a smirk formed on her muzzle and she took chase, prancing after her.

In her rush she slipped on the rocks and fell forward, falling onto her mother, whom toppled over with her. The two felines giggled as they splashed around in the cold water.

After they had their fill of fun they finally settled, resting peacefully in the stream, enjoying the coolness it provided them in the hot summer air. The trees and other plentiful plant life around them rustled in the oncoming breeze. It was starting to become chilly, and the day was beginning to end.

The tigress lifted her head looking out over the forest across the stream. The jungle was vast and green, quite beautiful really… but strangely quiet.

Her ears perked, her eyes searching.

The cub pulled her attention away from a stray leaf and glanced up at her mother.

"Mami?" she asked quietly, tilting her head in question.

The tigress remained unresponsive, continuing to stare out into the distance, her eyes sharp.

The cub watched her uneasily for a moment, and then fallowed her mother's gaze into the forest. One of the bushes shivered.

"Ninarika… Go back to the den…" her mother whispered, glancing down at her for only a second.

"But Mami…"

"Hush," she said gently, turning to her, stroking the cub's forehead with her soft paw. "Go back to the den. I will join you soon."

Ninarika gave her mother a look of worry before turning away and trotting back home.

Not long did it take for her to reach the den, given she and her mother did not wander far.

The young cub peered inside.

"Papa?" she called, but received only a hallow echo in response.

The cave was empty…

She turned and found her father out in the distance already with her mother. They both stood up, each talking it looked like. Then they suddenly stopped and looked off into the distance again…

"Papa…?" the cub whimpered, fear starting to sweep over her body.

Her father flicked his ears and turned to look at her. Both parents headed over to her, quickly and with haste.

"Ninarika, child," her father said softly, kneeling down in front of her, "We need you to stay here for now. We need you to stay in the den."

The cub looked up at him in surprise, "But Papa…"

"It'll be alright. Just stay here for us, oke?"

She shook her head slowly, unable to understand.

"I promise you everything will be fine," he said gently, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a big hug, "Just promise me you won't leave the den Ninarika…"

"… Oke…" she whispered, hiding in his embrace.

He let go of her and smiled weakly, his eyes full of insecurity.

"Good girl," he said before leaning down and kissing her on the forehead.

"We will be back soon. Till then just remember this," her mother said, leaning down and pointing to the shiny green emerald dangling from a tread tied around Ninarika's neck.

It had been a present her parents gave to her not long back...

"It will keep you safe…"

Ninarika looked down at her necklace than back up at her mother. She nodded in understanding and gave her a hug.

The two tigers stood back up and gave their cub one last sorrowful look before taking off and disappearing into the jungle.

Ninarika watched the place they had gone. Watched and waited. As if they would reappear at anytime. When they did not she shrunk back and curled up within the safety of her cave, hidden under the brush and tall grass. She huffed sadly, feeling abandoned and lonely.

The night fell fast and the air grew ever colder. The cub shivered and wrapped her tail tightly around her tiny body. She crinkled her muzzle and twitched her whiskers, and with a small puff of air she sneezed.

The sky suddenly rippled with lightening. A booming sound rang out across the jungle. Then everything went quiet.

Ninarika's hair stood on end, her eyes wide. Shaken up she began to tremble. She crawled forward to peek out of the cave, her body shuddering with every tiny step.

"Mami…" the cub whimpered, tears swelling up in her big golden eyes, "P-papa…"

No one responded.

"Mami!" she called out desperately, but her voice was so constricted that it sounded like a whisper.

"Ma-mami," she suddenly began to sob, her entire body trembling.

There was another bang, this time with no light flashing in the sky. The cub jumped with a light whimper.

She began to mew and cry, calling out to her parents. She would not cease her cries, not knowing how to stop, nor wanting to.

Then the sudden sound of footsteps stifled her mewling. She shrunk back into the brush, eyes widened with fear and horror.

"I found the den… hey look at this…"

A growl rose up in the young cub's throat as an unfamiliar creature peered down at her from outside the brush. A hand reached down to her but she retorted and hissed.

"Heh, a feisty one."

There were more footsteps and more sounds coming from other creatures.

The hand reached back down, but this time pushed past her gaping maw and grasped her around the scruff. She tried to bite, tried to fight back, but was somehow immobilized and couldn't move…

"Look at that coat! We could make a fortune off of this one…"

"What did you find?"

"A golden pelt."

"A strawberry tiger?"

"Ah, look at the pretty green gem around her neck…"

The cub couldn't think with all of the noises she was hearing all at once. She closed her eyes tight and tried not to move.

"Well put her in the crate next to the other Bengal's. We'll figure out what to do with her later. Maybe she will come to more use than they did."

She felt rough hands tear the necklace away from her and toss her into a hard, wooden crate… then it all went dark…


	2. The Escape

All went silent, and the only thing he could hear was the sound of his breathing, growing heavier by the second. His paws clenched and unclenched, his body growing tense. His eyes narrowed, the deep emerald green glinting in the light that shined down from above. Tail swishing slowly behind him, feet steady and arms splayed, he readied himself for the stunt. As all eyes laid on him, the world set, and without recognition, he was off.

His mind set on the tiny ring sitting at the end of the course. He flew by, a blur of orange and black stripes. Moving his hands beneath him, he began to twirl, spin, and flip, putting off marvelous displays as he traveled down the path. And as they called out his name he leapt, clearing the distance between him and that tiny little ring… and he had done it.

He had done the impossible once again.

Vitaly rose to his feet and a bright smile appeared on his face. He threw his arms up in the air and the crowd roared. He roared with them, sounding his victory. An unimaginable feeling of pride and excitement erupted in his chest. Grinning he bowed and reaching out one hand swept the ring stand off its post. The people cheered and bellowed as the Siberian tiger continued to show off.

Then with one swift movement he struck the ring stand into its once resting place and began to churn. The floor around him filled with life, a swirl of light exploded from the center. The ground began to lift as he continued to turn the stand. He swayed with the rising floor, moving into the spiraling staircase.

Vitaly looked out to the crowd of people, seeing their faces light up with amazement and wonder. He then glanced up, seeing the other circus animals begin to appear. It was an amazing sight to behold. A lion and jaguar dropping down from the ceiling as small dogs flew by like dazzling fire crackers. The zebra and sea lion shooting through the air, stripped with neon. The giraffe and hippo gliding over the tightropes with ease. The horses all bounding in unison. The elephants with their fiery trunks, expelling plumes of colorful flames. The bear and the lemur ridding on a motorcycle horizontally across a stream of light.

It was remarkable…

Then as he gazed at the others he noticed a pattern. Each animal had their own partner, their own group to perform with. No one had a solo act… besides Vitaly.

A sudden pang of loneliness surged through him and his expression suddenly changed into one of distraught. But as soon as this feeling came, it was gone, leaving only an afterthought behind. The tiger shook his head clear and exhaled deeply. His mind returned to a better place and he smiled up towards his friends. That's all he really needed after all. A family. HIS family.

The sound of a door slamming shut awoke the young Indian tigress. She raised her head, which had been resting on her crossed arms, and gazed out through the bars of her cage. The other animals around her stirred, gapping their mouths with wide yawns, some others wining in protest of the sudden and unpleasant noise. She pinned back her ears and growled in annoyance, laying her head back down.

The woods around the outside alignment of cages began to shudder in the strong and unexpected breeze. The night air became chilly as the skies filled with dark clouds. The golden tigress huffed gently to herself and closed her eyes once again, ignoring the cold.

The sound of doors opening and closing was heard once again, fallowed by footsteps, but that was also ignored. These sounds were not uncommon here. No, she had lived here far too long to be startled by these measly noises. She had grown used to this place's awful environment and fowl smells, and the constant sounds of other unfamiliar animals.

This place was a hell whole for exotic animals, torn from their homes and forced to live in captivity. Her rare golden pelt had earned her a spot amongst these poor creatures.

She had lived here almost all her life. It WAS her life now. It had been so long ago that her parents were killed by poachers, since she had been pulled away from her den and was traded off to this horrible place. She was SOLD. For a profit… and her emerald necklace went with her, but had not stayed with her. The man who paid for her hide now wore it around his neck…

She cringed at the thought, tears threatening to spill over. She growled in frustration and bit back a roar. She hated this place. It took away her freedom. Took away her hope, the only thing she had left of her deceased family. And it took away her name… she had almost forgotten her name… Ninarika… that's it…

And now she was stuck here, forever… forced to fight other animals and starve for days without food other wise. She shuttered, remembering the feeling of helplessness that swelled up within her when put through this. The winds began to pick up.

The sound of a crying animal rang out. She opened her eyes and looked in the direction of the painful sound. Another animal was being carried away, a human on either side holding it at the legs. She watched as they walked by.

Lately they had done this a lot. More and more animals had disappeared. More and more cages were found empty. The animals were no longer forced to fight. Maybe the master had grown tired of them? Whatever the case, it seemed as though he did not need them any longer.

The white tiger that had once neighbored her was taken away the other day. She couldn't tell if he was dead or alive. The smell was masked by the stench of the humans. But he was gone now too. He had warned her, this would happen. Told her the master had no more use for them. That he wanted their _pelts_. She did not believe him at first. But now it seemed it was true.

Though at this point she did not care. Let them come. Take her pelt. What did she care?

Then the master came. A golden string laced around his neck, with her family's emerald strung from it.

Ninarika sat up and stared out in disbelief.

He was here. He was gazing at her through the bars. How could he? How could he be here? He was never here in person…

Then he opened the cage. She froze. His eyes were filled with unrecognizable hatred. His movements were uneasy. He wobbled and stumbled, as if he couldn't keep himself steady.

She did not understand his current state. All she knew was that he was not acting right. He was sick. He was corrupted. He was venerable.

A low rumble rose in the young tigress's throat, her sight set on the man moving towards her. He was in HER cage. He had crossed the line of safety. This was HER territory, NOT his.

She rose up to her feet, her shoulders swaying. She waited; waited for the right moment. Her old master had now become her prey, and she finally had a chance to escape.

As his foot came down her claws sheathed, and she was on top of him, outside of the cage. His eyes filled with terror and he froze up. She looked him dead in the eyes before letting out an ear piercing roar.

Then in a flash she was off of him and running, already deep within the forest, the emerald necklace dangling from her jaws.


	3. The Meeting

She stepped out into the moonlight. The tree leaves rustled gently in the light breeze as the forest began to settle. Ninarika lifted her head to the sky, her eyes closed, feeling the wind brush through her golden-orange fur. The young tigress sighed gently and looked down at the green stone nestled in her solid white paw. She watched the starlight reflect from it, making the emerald twinkle, shining brilliantly. Exhaling, she wrapped the golden chain around her wrist, allowing the gem to rest easily in her paw.

Continuing through the forest and tall grass, she stumbled upon a creek. Ears perked, she quickly knelt down by the edge and leaned in to take a drink. The water felt icy cold slipping down her throat, but it was welcomed. Drinking this fresh water numbed her senses and caused a long lost sound to erupt from her chest frame. A purr.

When she was finished she pulled back to meet face to face with her own reflection. She stared at herself in somewhat disbelief, raising a single paw to touch her face. She traced the outline of her cheek then along her whiskers. She had grown up.

Suddenly she wasn't a cub anymore. She never imagined herself like this…

Memories came trickling back into her mind. She closed her eyes, quickly shutting those memories out. She did not need them now…

Opening her eyes again, she studied a leaf sitting on the surface of the water. She swatted at it, but missed, and it continued to float down stream, bobbing up and down from the splash. She stood up and stared at it for a moment, then fallowed, a sudden feeling of curiosity bubbling up within her.

After a while of fallowing it down stream she lost sight of the leaf, along with her interest. When she looked up again she saw a small rock face, covered in vines and surrounded by large ferns and other plants. The tigress gazed at it for a moment.

This place… it gave her an odd feeling of familiarity.

She got down on all fours and crept forward, moving around the plants to look inside. She emerged into a cave. A den.

… Her den…

Tears suddenly began to swell up in her eyes and her breathing became uneasy. This was her home. Long ago, before everything went wrong, this was her home. She was born here; raised here. And that stream… was the same one she and her mother and played in so many years before…

Slumping onto the rocky floor of the cave she began to silently sob.

She imagined her mother and father here, how they all used to cuddle together in the chill of the night. She began to shake and shiver. She missed the warmth of her parents. She missed the sound of their voices, the feel of their soft fur. She missed them entirely…

"Mami… Papa…" she whispered into the ground, her eyes closed tight, face wet with tears, "I-I'm sorry… I'm sorry I left the den… I'm sorry I disobeyed… I'm so sorry!"

She laid there for hours, her sobs turning into whimpers, then into silence all together. Her head hurt and her chest ached. Her eyes now began to burn. She opened them and slowly lifted her head. She sniffed the air. The smell of her family still lingered here, or so she imagined at least. And also a far more resent scent… the humans.

Her ears perked as she quickly sat up, staring directly outside the cave entrance. Everything was quiet and still… She knew this feeling. Something wasn't right.

Voices began to ring out through the forest and shadows of tall bodies cast along the forest floor as fire light arose from the distance. Ninarika immediately froze, listening. Then as she began to hear nearby footsteps and rustling, she leapt to her feet and ran.

They were back for her. Of course they were. How could she be so naive?

As she ran she heard more voices, shouting even, then the sound crackling thunder. No. Gunfire. That is what killed her parents. That is what was to kill _her_ if she did not move faster. But she couldn't move faster. Her lungs burned, they were constricted. She forced down air and unsheathed her claws. She tore past the trees and grass, barely grazing the earth's surface.

This was it. If she stopped now, it was all over.

The world began to spin as her vision blurred. She hadn't eaten. She was too weak. This was too much…

Then suddenly everything was turned upside down as she felt gravity pull her downward. She slipped and tumbled off the side of a steep hill, tumbling down far too quickly. She narrowly dodged tree after tree, then hit the hard ground with a sickening, _thwack_.

She lay there motionless as footsteps ran by, fallowed by shouts and flickering candle light. Then all was quiet again. After what seemed forever the tigress finally arose, her body trembling from the fall. She lifted her head slowly, her eyes glazed over. She gazed out towards the place the humans had gone.

They were gone…

Without thinking, she rose up to her feet and ran, ran across the open clearing ahead. She moved quickly through the tall grass towards the forest on the other side, where safety looked promising. As she reached the other side of the field she felt her body begin to weaken. Her sprint changed into a stride which in turn faded into a small limp. When she finally reached the forest, she was practically on her knees.

The tigress reached out and quickly grasped onto the trunk of the nearest tree as she lost all strength in her legs. Looking up, all she could think of was a place to hide, and began to climb, using whatever energy she had left in her. When her body went numb, she finally stopped and rested, perching on one of the tree's large branches.

Her body began to tingle as the adrenaline left her system, then after time set in, the pain became apparent. She cried out and buried her face into the tree's trunk, clinging to it like it was her life line. She hissed behind tears of agony as her body began to shut down on her.

She had to calm down. Had to rest… She needed to sleep now…

Her trembling lessened as she told herself this. She closed her eyes and breathed in deep. It was alright now. There was nothing to be afraid of…

But as this occurred to her, she realized she wasn't alone.

0o0o0o0o0o

The broad Siberian tiger stood at the corner of the train cart, leaning against the wall, spinning a single dagger between his claws. Vitaly watched the others as they all laughed and contributed to the on going conversation. He would smile or huff in amusement every time Gia or Stefano or when one of the other animals would say something silly or do something funny.

As usual, Alex was the center of attention. It was like the boy didn't know how to stop talking. Did he even know what he was talking about? None-the-less, it seemed the young lion was enjoying himself, and so was Gia as it appeared.

The night soon drew near and everyone began to leave the cart to find their own to rest until morning. Vitaly waited for the others to all pile out before exiting himself, but found that he was intervened.

"You were doing it again," Alex said as he casually jumped off of a crate and wandered over to the large tiger.

"Doing what?" Vitaly asked, looking oblivious.

"That knife-twirling… thing," The lion gestured to the blade, using both hands.

Vitaly raised a brow, then after a moment looked away, staring blankly at the wall.

Alex stood there in awkward silence for a moment before speaking once again. "What's up? You seem distracted or something."

Vitaly chuckled and glanced at Alex from the corner of his eye, "I'm not the only one being distracted."

Alex stared at him for a good minuet before realizing what he was talking about.

"Pffffft. Ah, Vitaly!" he playfully punched the tiger on the shoulder then laughed dryly, "Likes to poke fun."

Vitaly gave him a strange look and Alex's smile dropped.

"We're just friends," he said, putting on a poker face.

"Ah," Vitaly looked away and smiled.

Alex continued to stare at him, as if in disbelief, then turned and quickly walked out, rubbing the back of his head nervously.

Vitaly shook his head and pushed himself off the wall. He knew Alex had a thing for Gia. There was really no use hiding it.

Thinking about it made the tiger feel a bit of wait settle on his shoulders. Of course Gia was family, he had to feel just a bit protective about her, but that really wasn't it. He knew where this feeling was heading. He had had a mate once, and lost her. He knew the feeling, and the feeling fallowing. He couldn't keep shaking it from his mind. Now that everyone was a family again. Now that everyone was settling down. He felt almost left out.

Pah, but who needs a mate when you have family, eh?

Yes, family was far more important.

He stepped outside and was embraced by the bitter cold. Continuing to twirl his knife he wandered back to his cart. The trees around him rustled in the strong winds. He could feel it push against him, tugging at his fur. He moved past it though, practically unfazed. He was used to this kind of weather. Where he came from there was plenty of it. But finding so much of it here in India seemed strange. Perhaps it was raining season?

Then his ears perked. He paused, feeling the air shift around him. Before the shuffling could even be heard his dagger sliced through the air, making a hallowed thumping sound as it collided with one of the trees. The tiger marched over to the knife and pulled it out with one swift move, then gazed up into the trees where he had heard the noise.

A low growl filled his throat, a threatening sound to let others know that he was armed and dangerous. It was a warning, to keep others away. He was willing to protect his family with his life. And that was that.

Then before he could move something shifted, and he could have sworn he saw a pair of eyes peer strait down at him. But in an instant it was gone.

He stood there for a moment longer before turning around and heading back to the train.

A small tigress moved back into view, watching him leave, hidden safely in the darkness of the forest.


End file.
